MUSIC

BLK MUZAK by Mourning [A] BLKstar

[2017] NOW STREAMING ON ON SPOTIFY AND APPLE MUSIC

“Taking on influences as wide ranging as Eddie Gale's late '60s spiritual jazz opus Ghetto Music and the world-renowned works of poet, playwright and essayist June Jordan, BLK Muzak is life through sound. With the group comprising vocalists LaToya Kent, Kyle Kidd, and James Longs, a full spectrum of knowledge and harmony is offered. Scintillating vocal runs spiral over smoldering synth bass and hard hitting snares and kicks. An arena where the presence of a Dead Prez and a Gil Scott-Heren are pulled into the same tapestry of culture. The name of the group finds a shared passageway to multiple worlds and reflects the importance of the music, showing honor and acknowledgement to the lives that've died at the hands of police, along with the beauty and expressive legacy of African-American artistry.” -Erik Otis (Alpha Pup Records)

The GARNER POEMS by Mourning [A] BLKstar

[2018] NOW STREAMING ON ON SPOTIFY AND APPLE MUSIC

“Where the Cleveland group’s 2017 album, The Possible, drew from the funk of groups like Sly and The Family Stone, The Garner Poems evokes a much darker atmosphere, responding to the collective frustration and mourning of a people across the diaspora. Wrought with a deep, spiritual vibrancy, The Garner Poems traverses the borders of soul, funk, and hip-hop, but does so with solemnity…

There is hope to be found on The Garner Poems—the uptempo funk of “Destiny Skies” hopes for better days—but its somber mood is a reminder that before we can get there, we have to reckon with the current state of society. The Garner Poems shines because it honors the legacy of Black consciousness, continuing the expressions of both joy and pain that the group’s predecessors share.” -Jesse Bernard (Bandcamp, Album of the Week)